Will you be standing after judgment?

This week we are focusing our attention on, what I believe to be one of the most powerful passages of scripture in the New Testament: Luke 6:43-49. Jesus says,

"For no good tree bears bad fruit, nor again does a bad tree bear good fruit, 44 for each tree is known by its own fruit. For figs are not gathered from thornbushes, nor are grapes picked from a bramble bush. 45 The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks. 46 "Why do you call me 'Lord, Lord,' and not do what I tell you? 47 Everyone who comes to me and hears my words and does them, I will show you what he is like: 48 he is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock. And when a flood arose, the stream broke against that house and could not shake it, because it had been well built. 49 But the one who hears and does not do them is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. When the stream broke against it, immediately it fell, and the ruin of that house was great."

This is a parable that serves as a warning; a warning that trials, tests of our faith, and judgment will come. It is a parable that serves as an examination; will my faith pass the test? Will I be standing after judgment? It also serves as an exhortation; to respond to the Gospel appropriately so that we can be ready when that day comes. It is my prayer that everyone reading this blog will respond to the Gospel appropriately: that we each will examine ourselves, not by our feelings or our past decisions, but by the Word of God.

There are four areas of our lives that we must examine this week in response to this parable to ensure that we will be left standing after the judgment of God.

The first area of our life that we must examine is our produce. What are we producing? Jesus said, "For no good tree bears bad fruit, nor again does a bad tree bear good fruit, for each tree is known by its own fruit. For figs are not gathered from thornbushes, nor are grapes picked from a bramble bush. The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks" (Luke 6:43-45). Examine your produce! Good fruit shows that the tree from which it came is healthy. Bad fruit indicates that the tree from which it fell is sickly. Examine your fruit. What do Your Lips say about You? I cannot know your heart, but I don't have to. I don't have to know your heart because the Bible says it will come out of your lips. Whatever a person has set his heart on will be revealed in his speech. Heb 13:15 Through him then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name. What are you saying? What do you talk about? Gossip and slander? Curses and the world? Or do you speak of God, Christ, His glory and His work?

Examine your fruit. What does Your Love say about You? 1 John 2:9-11 He who says he is in the light, and hates his brother, is in darkness until now. He who loves his brother abides in the light, and there is no cause for stumbling in him. But he who hates his brother is in darkness and walks in darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes. Do you love your fellow man? People sit in the pews of our churches, have their names on our membership rolls, and claim emphatically that they are born again, yet at the same time they are filled with prejudice and hatred. Listen over their shoulder and you will hear their hatred for those of another skin color. Listen to their conversations in the barber shops, cafes, and hunting clubs and you will hear their hatred for immigrants and/or those of another race, culture, or creed. These same people will claim that they know Christ, yet would lead an uprising if a person of another race or culture attempted to join their church. They have their place and we have ours, right? True believers have learned, with the help of the Holy Spirit, to stop seeing black and white, legal and illegal immigrant, rich and poor, normal and strange, drug addicts and drunks. They have learned to simply see souls in need of a Savior. We must pass the test of love for our fellow men and that means that we must be willing to open up our churches and our lives to those who are different from us for the cause of Christ.

We are not only to love our fellow man, but our fellow members as well. There are people who claim to be Christians who will say things like, “I don’t need to go down there to the church. I can worship right here with my Bible and my television. After all, that church is full of hypocrites. The preacher is not friendly enough and the deacons run the church.” There are others who claim to be Christian who despise meeting with their brothers and sisters in Christ. They don’t get excited about coming to the house of God. They look more forward to lodge meetings, hunting club meetings, weight watchers (well…maybe not), or scrap booking sessions than to the fellowship of the saints. Something is wrong with that picture. First John 3:14 states that “We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers.” If we do not love our fellow believers enough to long to fellowship, worship, grow, and go with them, there is something missing.

Examine your produce. What does Your Life say about You? Listen to the word of God.

Rev 21:7-8 The one who conquers will have this heritage, and I will be his God and he will be my son. 8 But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death."

1 Cor 6:9-11 Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.

Gal 5:19-24 Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires

What does your fruit say about who you are? What is your life producing? Jesus said in Luke 3:8-8, "Bear fruits in keeping with repentance. And do not begin to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father.' For I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham. 9 Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. Every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire."

You will know them by their fruits. What is your life producing? You can know where you stand with God and if you will be left standing after the judgment by examining your fruits. What do they say about you?